The Grace: Yacht Details

A deluxe luxury motor yacht, one of the finest in the Islands

The Grace offers the chance to cruise through the Galapagos on an
exceptionally beautiful and historic vessel that was once a wedding
present for Princess Grace of Monaco. With a maximum of 18 passengers,
she provides one of the finest ways to visit the islands. The guides
and cuisine are of the highest quality you can find. Decks and social
areas are spacious and well appointed.

Grace
7 night Itinerary A

Saturday
to Saturday

Day 1

Saturday

Arrive to Baltra / Daphne Island

Upon
arrival to the Galapagos Islands you will board the M/Y
Grace where you will have
lunch and a quick briefing en route to your first visitor site:
Daphne Island, a small tuff cone that is incredibly important in the Galapagos. Daphne has been of central focus to scientific researchers and is the site of a decades-long project by biologists Paul & Rosemary Grant to study the evolution of Darwin’s Finches. You will navigate around the island by boat while your guide talks about the tremendous importance this small island has had on research and our knowledge of the entire archipelago. You may spot the island’s resident finches as well as short-eared owls, masked boobies, and Galapagos martins.

In the afternoon
there are opportunities for snorkeling with sea lions and
penguins, as well as swimming opportunities in the cove. After
this visit you can enjoy a welcome cocktail as you listen to the
first formal briefing before dinner.

Day 2

Sunday

Santa Fe Island / South Plaza Island

In
the morning you will visit Santa Fe Island, home to one of the
most beautiful and sheltered bays of the archipelago, and to some
of the best snorkeling because of the crystal clear waters. This
is one of the best locations to see sea turtles, swim with sea
lions, and get a glimpse of the Galapagos White-tipped Shark.
After a wet landing you will walk up to a nearby cliff to see the
land iguanas in an area of Opuntia Cacti.

In the afternoon
you will visit South Plaza Island and see land iguanas wandering
through bright red carpet weed. You will also see swallow tailed
gulls nesting around the overhang tops and red-billed tropicbirds,
frigate birds, and shearwaters.

Day 3

Monday

Tower Island: Prince Phillip’s Steps / Darwin Bay

Tower Island could
serve as a film set for a secret submarine base! The southwestern
part of the island is an ocean-filled caldera ringed by the outer
edges of a sizeable and mostly submerged volcano. The island sits
to the northwest, slightly removed from the Galapagos archipelago.
It is also known as “Bird Island,” a name it lives up to in a
spectacular way!

Day 4

Tuesday

Punta Espinosa (Fernandina) / Urbina Bay (Isabela)

In
the morning you will visit Fernandina Island, home to La Cumbre
volcano, which erupts frequently (most recently in May 2005). You
will visit Punta Espinosa, a narrow spit of land where a number of
unique species, such as marine iguanas, sea lions, flightless
cormorants, herons, egrets and Galapagos hawks can be seen in
close proximity.

The afternoon visit
is to Urbina Bay, directly west of Isabela’s Volcano Alcedo,
where you will make an easy, wet landing (a hop into a few inches
of water). You will walk a three mile (5 km) stretch of marine
reef that has been uplifted by as much as 13 feet (4 meters) out
of the water. Highlights of this excursion are the giant land
iguanas and giant tortoises. There is also an opportunity to go
snorkeling amongst marine creatures or just relax on shore.

Day 5

Wednesday

Isabela: Tagus Cove / Punta Vicente Roca

In
the morning you will visit Tagus Cove on Isabela Island. A wooden
stairway rises to the trail entrance and continues around Darwin
Lake through a dry vegetation zone that ends in a promontory
formed by spatter cones. The site provides spectacular views of
your boat in the bay, as well as the Darwin and Wolf Volcanoes.

In the afternoon
you head north to Punta Vicente Roca. Snorkeling is incredible
here as a result of the nutrient-rich waters of the Humboldt
Current that bathe the western side of the archipelago. You will
have a chance to see colorful fish, sea lions, penguins, and sea
turtles in the water. This is also a great spot to take an
interesting panga ride to spot wildlife along the shores and
cliffs.

Day 6

Thursday

Santiago Island: Espumilla Beach or Buccanneer’s Cove / James Bay

The morning visit is to Esmpumilla Beach whose main attractions are a palo santo forest, the beach, and the beautiful landscape. The beach is an important site for nesting marine turtles. You will follow a trail that heads into a sparely forested area then back to the beach. Along the way you may see a variety of Galapagos Finches or a Vermilion fly catcher. Once back at the beach visitors may have the chance to swim or snorkel, time permitting. Shortly afterwards you will visit Buccaneers Cove which is very scenic with steep cliffs made of tuff formations and the dark reddish-purple sand beach. This dramatic landscape is made all the more impressive by the hundreds of seabirds perched atop the cliffs. Two of the more recognizable rock formations are known as the “monk” and “elephant rock.”

The afternoon visit
is to James Bay where you land on a black beach with intriguing
eroded rock formations. A trail leads to a series of
crystal-clear grottos formed of broken lava tubes, which are home
to sea lions, fur seals, marine iguanas, and tropical fish. You
can snorkel in the late afternoon at one of the best sites on the
islands to see Green Sea Turtles and Galapagos Penguins swimming.

Day 7

Friday

Santa Cruz: Charles Darwin Research Center / Highlands

Santa
Cruz is the second largest island in the Galapagos and its
capital, Puerto Ayora, is the economic center of the Islands. In
the morning you will visit the Charles Darwin Research Station to
visit the Giant Tortoise and Land Iguana Breeding and Rearing
Program.

The
afternoon visit is to the Highlands, where the dry coastal
vegetation transitions to lush wet fields and forests overgrown
with moss and lichens. Your destination is the Tortoise Reserve,
where you will have chances see these animals in the wild.

Day 8

Saturday

San Cristobal: Interpretation Center / Cruise Ends

Today your cruise
comes to an end, but before you leave you will visit the Galapagos
National Park Visitor Centre that presents a comprehensive exhibit
of the islands’ natural history, human interaction, ecosystems,
flora, and fauna. From the Centre, a short trail arrives at
Frigate Bird Hill, where both “magnificent-frigates” and
“great-frigates” can be seen in the same colony. Next you
return to the airport for your flight back to the Ecuadorian
mainland.

Grace
7 night Itinerary B

Saturday
to Saturday

Day 1

Saturday

Begin Cruise / San Cristobal: Lobos & Kicker Rock

Upon
arrival to the Galapagos Islands you will board the M/Y
Grace where you will have lunch
and a quick briefing en route to the first visitor sites: Lobos
Beach and Kicker Rock. Lobos
Island, across a small channel off the coast of San Cristobal
Island, lives up to its name of -Sea
Lion Island- with its noisy
population of frolicking and barking beasts. This is your first
chance to share the water with a playful colony of the “wolves
of the sea”. From Lobos you will head to Kicker Rock, a
spectacular rock formation that rises 152 meters (500 feet) out of
the Pacific. It takes the form of a sleeping lion, but from
another angle you can see that the rock is split, forming a
colossal tablet.

After this visit
you will be invited to share in a welcome cocktail while listening
to the first formal briefing before dinner.

Day 2

Sunday

Espanola: Punta Suarez / Gardner Bay

Hood
Island is the southernmost island of the archipelago and is one of
the most popular due to the breathtaking variation and number of
fauna that inhabit it. In the morning you will visit Punta Suarez
where you will witness the largest variety of marine iguanas in
the Galapagos, masked boobies and blue footed boobies nesting
along the cliff’s edge, as well as the famous waved albatross.

In the afternoon
you will visit Gardner Bay, a magnificent long white sandy beach
where colonies of sea lions laze in the sun, sea turtles swim
offshore, and inquisitive mockingbirds boldly investigate new
arrivals.

Day 3

Monday

Floreana: Post Office Bay / Cormorant Point

Floreana
Island has had a colorful history: Pirates, whalers, convicts, and
a small band of somewhat peculiar colonists—a Baroness among
them—who chose a Robinson Crusoe existence that ended in mystery
and death. You will visit Post Office Bay, where in 1793 British
whalers set up a barrel as the island‘s Post Office, to send
letters home on passing ships. The tradition continues to this
day, simply by dropping a post card into the barrel without a
stamp. In the late morning you will walk to the Baroness Overlook
for some striking views of the scenery surrounding the Island.

In the afternoon
you will visit Cormorant Point which offers two highly contrasting
beaches; a green-olivine beach and an iron-red beach. Between the
two beaches is a salt lagoon frequented by flamingoes, pintails,
stilts, and other wading birds. In the late afternoon you will
head to the tiny islet known as Champion, considered one of the
top snorkeling sites the Galapagos and offers prime underwater sea
lion interactions.

Day 4

Tuesday

Santa Cruz: Dragon Hill / Highlands Tortoise Reserve

After
a dry landing at Dragon Hill, you will head up the beach to a
trail that takes you to a hyper saline lagoon. This is a seasonal
home for pink flamingos. You will notice that as you make your
way from the coast toward the top of the hill, there is a
transition from intertidal vegetation like mangroves to dry zone
vegetation including Palo Santo cacti and silvery leafed Palo
Santo trees. Keep your eyes open for the famous Darwin’s
Finches and Land iguanas in the bushes. The lava flows that reach
out from the shore from Dragon Hill form black reefs where you
will enjoy some excellent snorkeling late in the morning.

In the afternoon
you are off to the Highlands of Santa Cruz, where the dry coastal
vegetation transitions to lush wet fields and forests overgrown
with moss and lichens. The destination is the Tortoise Reserve,
where you will have chances see these animals in the wild, walk
through lava tubes, and see the Gemelos,
twin collapsed craters.

Day 5

Wednesday

Santa Cruz: Bachas Beach / Chinese Hat Islet

In
the morning you will visit Las Bachas, a sandy white-coral beach
that is a major egg-laying site for sea turtles. The name Bachas
refers to the remains of landing craft left here at the end of
WWII. Ashore marine iguanas mingle with flamingos and other
wading birds in another of the many super saline lagoons found in
the Galapagos.

In the afternoon
you will head north to Chinese Hat Islet, named for the
resemblance its shape has to a traditional Chinese Coolie’s hat.
The next visitor’s site is off limits to larger groups and day
boats, making it one of the least visited sites in the central
islands. The landing site is a tiny crescent shaped cove with
sandy white beach cradled between black lava rocks and the crystal
turquoise waters of the channel. A sea lion colony likes to rest
on the warm white sands, while the rockier sections of the coast
are alive with fiery colored sally lightfoot crabs. Marine
iguanas sun themselves atop the rocks after foraging for algae in
the channel.

Day 6

Thursday

Rabida Island / Sullivan Bay (Santiago)

Rabida
Island, also commonly known by its English name of Jervis Island,
is known for its unique reddish-maroon terrain as a result of the
oxidation of lava. It is home to large populations of sea lions,
pelicans, flamingoes, as well as a thick forest of Palo Santo
trees. A yellow saltwater lagoon is found behind the reddish
beach, where vast numbers of brightly colored pink flamingoes can
be seen with male sea lions that have been ousted from their
groups. There will be a late morning snorkeling opportunity along
the rocks with sea lions and tropical fish.

The afternoon visit
is to Sullivan Bay, one of the most outstanding volcanic sites in
the Galapagos. In the nearly 100 years since the Sullivan Bay
Flow, only a few plants like Mollugo and Lava cacti have managed
to take root in this harsh environment. Oystercatchers can be
seen fishing for crabs and mollusks in the tide pools of Sullivan
Bay. After exploring the lava flow, there are oppurtunties for
swimming and snorkeling with playful sea lions off two small coral
beaches.

Day 7

Friday

Bartolome / North Seymour

In
the morning you will visit Bartolome Island, famous for Pinnacle
Rock, where you will see Galapagos Penguins and sea lions. You
will also hike a trail to Bartolome’s summit where you will be
rewarded with spectacular views of Pinnacle Rock and the beach
where the crystal blue waters of the bay cradle the yacht.

The afternoon visit
is to North Seymour Island, a good nesting site for frigate birds
and Blue-footed boobies. The Island was lifted from the ocean
floor by a seismic event, and its origins as a seabed give the
island its low, flat profile. This island is teaming with life!
You might have to give way to a passing sea lion or marine iguana;
blue-footed booby nests sit beside the trail where mating pairs
perform their courtship dance. A tiny forest of silver-grey Palo
Santo trees stand just above the landing, usually without leaves,
waiting for the rain to bring them into bloom.

Day 8

Saturday

Mosquera Islet / Cruise Ends (Baltra)

Today
your cruise comes to an end, but before you disembark you will
visit Mosquera Islet, located between North Seymour and Baltra
Islands. It is one of the smallest Islands resulting from an
uplift of sand, made up of coral reefs and rocks. It boasts one
of the largest sea lion colonies in the Galapagos archipelago.
There are occasional reports of Orca whales seen praying on the
sea lion colony. It is also home to many sea birds making it an
excellent site for observing shorebirds.

After you visit you
will return to the airport for your flight back to the Ecuadorian
mainland.